Bitcoin bounced ahead of today’s US jobs report as traders priced in fresh macro data and regulatory signals. Market participants are watching closely after the SEC indicated plans to revisit crypto policy, while several big moves from exchanges and institutions added momentum to the market.
In a high-profile custody dispute, broker-dealer WLFI blacklisted an address linked to Justin Sun, freezing associated tokens — a move Sun called unreasonable. The freeze highlights growing tensions between platforms’ compliance controls and token holders’ access to funds, raising custody and governance questions for custody providers and users.
Institutional activity is notable: Sora Ventures reportedly plans to buy $1 billion in BTC, while Hong Kong’s Yungfeng Financial purchased roughly $44 million in ETH and DFDV bought about $40 million in SOL. Meanwhile, MicroStrategy (MSTR) shares slipped as Nasdaq said it will increase scrutiny of certain data-rich securities.
On-chain and infrastructure updates followed: a former ETH ICO participant moved to stake about $646 million worth of ETH, Tether said it is considering investments in gold miners, and Fireblocks launched a stablecoin payments network. Etherscan expanded to the SEI ecosystem with Seiscan, and Stripe with Paradigm unveiled the Tempo blockchain.
Regulatory developments include the UK tightening AML rules for crypto firms, South Korea capping crypto loan interest at 20% and banning leveraged loans, while some EU lawmakers remain skeptical about a digital euro. These measures could reshape product access and compliance costs.
Why it matters: a mix of institutional buying, custody disputes and regulatory shifts is driving short-term volatility and longer-term structural changes. Risk reminder: crypto markets remain sensitive to macro data and regulatory announcements — investors should assess liquidity and compliance risks before trading.
Source: Decrypt. Read the original coverage for full details.